Reverse Romance
by AlienzRayne
Summary: A direct sequel to Thick as Thieves, set after Urban Legend in Limbo. Marisa goes on the hunt to find a certain amanojaku.


Marisa loved to fly across Gensokyo on days like today. The sun was out, a gentle breeze was playing with her golden hair, and the fairies seemed to be too busy relaxing and playing in the streams and lakes to care about fighting. Marisa herself had chosen to ditch her usual shirt and skirt combo in favour of a thin black dress and her widest brimmed hat, and had a pair of small cooling charms flying alongside her. She too was in no real fighting mood, unless her opponent was Cirno; the fairy's spell cards made lovely air conditioning. Marisa was instead on a search for something she knew would be hard to find: Seija Kijin's hideout. Granted, the witch couldn't say for sure if she even had a place to call home, but she'd decided to spend the day hunting for the fugitive's whereabouts anyway.

So far, she'd made her way across the Forest of Magic, the outskirts of the Human Village and the general area close to the Shining Needle Castle, which still hung upside-down a few miles from the Bamboo Forest of the Lost, only to find nothing. Even her tracking spells were failing her, giving her no results despite being programmed to look for an Amanojaku-type youkai's trail. At this point, the magician was ready to admit this adventure had been a waste of time. However, she'd decided to travel along the massive stretch of land around the Garden of the Sun as a last resort; there was plenty of hidden woodland around the garden, and humans tended to avoid the area.

As she flew by the large field of flowers, Marisa began to reflect on her previous meeting with Seija. Things had escalated in a way Marisa could have only imagined, with the two ending up passionately kissing before being disturbed by Reimu. In retrospect, the witch was glad her miko friend had come to alert her to the incident that had occurred, but she was still annoyed that she let Seija go without even saying goodbye. The incident had been worth it though. Marisa had even travelled to the outside world to stop the perpetrator, a teenage girl with psychic powers. Granted, Reimu beat the same girl up again later and claimed all the credit for solving the incident, but she didn't get to claim to be the first human from Gensokyo to go to the outside world!

However, it was the fact she wanted Seija that plagued her mind. Before, she was fascinated by the fugitive youkai, now she knew that she was completely obsessed. Marisa craved her desperately, with her thoughts forever trailing back to what happened in her house two weeks ago. Around the same time of the occult ball incident, Seija had attacked Reimu's shrine with the genuine Miracle Mallet and Shinmyoumaru as a hostage. Apparently she used the mallet to turn Reimu's bullets into money, stole it all and ran away, dumping Shin and the mallet as she went. Marisa had no clue why the amanojaku had robbed the shrine like that, but she knew that her best friend was now out for blood. That made Marisa feel conflicted. On the one hand, she desired Seija like something fierce, but on the other, her best mate wanted said youkai dead or kicked out of Gensokyo. She really didn't know how to feel about it all.

Suddenly, the witch was momentarily blinded by a pulsing yellow stream of light, which, amongst this field of sunflowers, could only mean one thing: Yuuka. The light, clearly the flower youkai's laser attack Marisa had based her Master Spark off of, missed her by at least a foot. A warning shot. Marisa spun around to see Yuuka floating close behind her, a small smile playing on her lips. It was enough to make her shiver.

"Uh, hey Yuuka, fancy seein' you here!" the magician forced out a casual laugh. The green-haired lady gave her parasol a twirl in response.

"Kirisame, how nice to see you here on a day like this. Causing trouble again, I see?" She made a small hand gesture to Marisa's hand, where a broken up carnation dangled between her fingers. The witch saw her mistake immediately. She had a tendency to fidget and play around with things like flowers when she was flying long-distance, and she'd made the error of idly pulling apart a flower whilst in Yuuka's territory. That was like asking for a death sentence.

"Oh, uh, heh...my mistake. Sorry!" Marisa wanted to get away, but she knew turning around and flying off at max speed would cause more trouble than it was worth. "Just let me off this once, I got stuff I gotta do! Promise I won't do it again!"

That just made the flower youkai giggle, a sweet but disturbing sound. "I thought you knew me well, Miss Marisa. I can't let anyone hurt my flowers, and you are no exception." Her scarlet eyes narrowed. "Perhaps a spell card battle? We could limit it to one card each if you are in such a hurry."

No backing out now. A short spell card duel with Yuuka was considered nothing; she usually demanded long battles, with at least four cards each. Marisa began to think of the cards she had available that she could use: any Spark-related cards were a no-go, which took out a large chunk of her arsenal. She did have a decent alternative though, a card she considered one of her personal best.

"Fine, one card each, an' I declare first. No time-outs!" She didn't want to get stuck with a time-out card, not when she still needed to find Seija.

"I accept those terms. Let's begin!" Within a second, Yuuka was speeding around Marisa, throwing clusters of green danmaku in the witch's direction. Marisa dodged artfully, sending some star-shaped bullets Yuuka's way. When this dance had gone on for half a minute, Marisa decided to declare.

"Light Blast - Shoot the Moon!" the spell card activated and immediately trapped Yuuka in between laser beams. Marisa flung more star danmaku at her opponent, hoping to catch her off-guard, but her optimism was shattered when she saw Yuuka get free of the enclosed section and move into a more open area. Marisa cast the vertical lasers again, and again Yuuka avoided being caught in a sticky situation, firing more floral bullets whilst Marisa worked herself up. After three rounds of failing to box Yuuka in, an off-center barrage caught Marisa, forcing her spell card to end. Yuuka's eyes seemed to sparkle at the realisation that it was time for her spell card. She muttered the spell card quietly, too quiet for Marisa to catch the name of the card, and it activated. Around Marisa, yellow petal-shaped bullets surrounded her. Great, one of those cards. The witch let out an exasperated sigh and resigned to dodging the green and red kunai danmaku that began stalking her around the circle.

She had said she didn't want a time-out card to deal with, but Yuuka's new spell card was turning into one. Marisa tried in vain to find enough of an opening to retaliate, but the kunai were too persistent. Thankfully, the barrier was not one that just tightened, instead growing larger, then smaller, and so on. At least it gave the magician enough room to work with, but she was quickly becoming tired by the attack. She supposed that was what she got for fighting on such a hot day. She became more sluggish, her breath shallower. As if on cue, a kunai caught up with her and hit her, thus ending the duel. The bullet was painful in a burning sense, and left a tear on the side of her dress were it hit, larger than the usual fraying where she grazed the other danmaku. Looking up, she saw Yuuka giggling to her, the parasol twirling once more.

"My, that was clumsy of you!" She gave Marisa a serene smile. "Oh well, a win is a win, and I won't be one to argue. I hope you've learnt your lesson now?"

"Yeah yeah, don't be hurtin' flowers, I get ya." The magician was exhausted. Perhaps a day of non-stop flying followed by a spell card duel had not been a good idea. Thankfully, the flower youkai waved her away, and let Marisa go on with her search for Seija. However, she had barely left the Garden of the Sun when she felt her broom wobble violently; she needed to get down to the ground and rest. Spying a tiny clearing on the border of the woodland by the Garden, Marisa landed and leaned against a large tree, taking deep breaths. As her breathing recovered, her vision blurred, until all she saw was smudges of green, brown and blue, and then black.

* * *

Seija had spent most of the day foraging for food in vain. Being on the run was tough, but today seemed to be one of her bad days, where nothing useful appeared and she had to be extra careful to not be seen. At one point, a fairy had spotted her, and the amanojaku had decided to kill her before the thing even realised what was going on. She was a fairy, she'd be back in a few hours, with no memory of seeing Gensokyo's most wanted.

It didn't mean she hated this lifestyle; in fact, she thought she suited it. There was something delicious about being so hated that she had to hide from everyone. She was enjoying the silence in her cave, and what food she found she never had to share. Her moods had been lifted when she'd attacked that stupid shrine maiden, taken Shinmyoumaru captive and had raided the shrine with the Miracle Mallet in tow. She'd enjoyed listening to the inchling cry out in anger and fear, and the miko had not failed to deliver in terms of brutal danmaku. Shame she hadn't bargained on Seija using the mallet to turn those silly amulets into cash! And what had Seija done with that money? Nothing. As satisfying as it was now owning a large pile of coins, she knew she couldn't even go to a youkai merchant, let alone sneak into the human village. Instead, she'd left it piled high in a crevice within her hideout, waiting for some sort of opportunity to come by.

As Seija arrived at her cave, she spied a broomstick left lying on the grass a few feet from the cave entrance. She knew only one person who rode a broomstick, but how could they be here? Sure enough, Seija walked over to where the broom lay and found Marisa unconscious a few feet away. Something in Seija made her pick up the magician and carry her into the cave, not caring about anything other than the blonde's safety. As she lay her down on a pile of fabrics she called her bed, the youkai began to think properly. Why was she caring for a human? Perhaps it was because she still craved her? Some perverse form of concern? Whatever it was, Seija felt like she should make sure Marisa was at least okay. Once she was sure the passed-out girl was breathing normally, she sat down by her on the makeshift bed, and closed her eyes for a quick nap.

* * *

The sound of rustling fabric and breathing close by greeted Marisa as she woke up. Opening her eyes, she saw a decorated cave, filled with bits and bobs, amongst them Seija. The amanojaku was leaning against the wall next to where Marisa lay, in the middle of yawning. Upon noticing that the witch was awake, Seija turned to look at her with wary eyes. The magician likewise watched her for a few seconds before speaking.

"So, uh, hey." The youkai laughed.

"You wake up in a strange place and a 'hey' is all you can say? Hah!" her face softened and a smirk appeared. "I found you knocked out and thought I'd bring you here to eat. You can thank me later by being quiet as I cook you."

"In your dreams!" Marisa laughed too. It felt strangely natural, bantering with someone like Seija. "Heard ya pissed off Reimu like somethin' fierce, so I came lookin' for ya."

"Did you now?" Seija's smirk grew. "You look like you were beaten up by some bigger fish on the way here, though." She chuckled to herself. "Yeah, I attacked your friend. So what? It was fun, and I sure as hell don't regret it."

"All I'm sayin' is you better be careful. When Reimu gets that angry, even a miracle's not gonna help ya." Marisa had sat up at this point, and shuffled to be slightly closer to Seija. They paused and watched each other for some time, neither wanting to speak. The witch could feel herself grow hot, and her thoughts began to wander back to that day in her house. She wanted to say a hundred different things to Seija, but settled on one.

"Seija...why did you bring me here? Like, really?" That made the amanojaku pause and think. After what seemed like an hour, she answered.

"I just did." She spoke quietly, her voice distant. "Didn't really think why I did." Her frown twisted into a crude smile. "What's got you asking me that?"

"Dunno," Marisa admitted, "curiosity, perhaps? Whatever it is, um, thanks."

"Ew." Seija stuck her tongue out in disgust. "You humans and your pleasantries!"

Marisa chuckled and leaned in. "You amanojaku and your upside-down personalities, more like!" Seija laughed too.

"I'll give you that one, miss witch!" She paused and gave her human companion a more genuine smile. "Marisa. I should get used to that, I suppose." Marisa returned the smile, and the two sat there for a few seconds, seemingly appreciating each other's company. The magician felt relaxed here, in an unknown cave with a known fugitive who liked to play dirty. The irony certainly amused her, the the youkai was no doubt enjoying the strangeness of the situation too. Getting her thoughts in order, Marisa decided to ask her a question that had been haunting her since their last encounter.

"Seija...do you have any feelings, y'know, towards me?" She quickly looked away to hide her reddening face. Oh well, she'd said it now, no going back. After what seemed like a lifetime, the black-haired girl responded, her voice almost silent.

"I think I do." Marisa shot her head up and stared at Seija, who was watching the blonde with wide eyes.

The silence stretched on again, this time with neither girl wanting to say a word or move a muscle. Marisa's mind was in a scramble. Seija liked her, or as close to it as an amanojaku could be. She really didn't know what to do, how to feel, how to react. Eventually, Marisa went for the least verbal option; turning to face her completely, she leaned in and cupped Seija's face in her hands, pulling her into a long kiss. They sat like that, in that single kiss, until Marisa pulled away for breath. Seija immediately returned the kiss, embracing Marisa and pressing her against the cavern wall. It all seemed too good to be true until some loud rustling could be heard from above, Reimu's voice following.

"Marisa! Hello?! Marisa!" The pair jumped at the sound of the shrine maiden's voice, but both visibly relaxed after a minute upon realising that she didn't know where the magician was. Marisa herself seemed the more tense, but suddenly dragged Seija into a more passionate kiss. The youkai responded, grabbing on the witch's lower back with one arm, and her thigh with the other hand, pulling her closer as she did so. Marisa's own arms tangled around Seija's neck and shoulders, encouraging her to deepen the kiss further; Seija submitted and dove her tongue into the witch's mouth and tightened her grip on her leg, making Marisa moan as the amanojaku's nails dug into her bare thigh. Above, Reimu can still be faintly heard, but she sounded like she was moving away from the cave's position. Once her voice had vanished completely, Seija took the opportunity to shove Marisa back onto the makeshift bed and pulled away from the kiss, taking time to admire how flustered and out-of-breath she had made the human girl. Marisa found herself quietly moaning Seija's name in desire and used one hand to tug on the front of the dark-haired girl's dress, whilst the other's mouth began to explore the witch's body at a slow, deliberate pace.

* * *

By nightfall, Reimu had scoured the majority of Gensokyo in search for her friend, but Marisa was nowhere to be found despite her fight with Yuuka having being well-seen. Said flower youkai had pointed towards the woods, but the clusters of trees had made traversing it hard. She thought about asking Sakuya or Reisen to help her, given their abilities and knack for finding things, but she'd have to follow that through later. She continued on her lazy path until she no longer saw the remnants of the day, then came to a stop. With a huff, she gave the translucent purple ying-yang ball orbiting her a smack, causing the thing to bob violently and make a crackling sound before a voice arrived.

"Reiiiimuuuu~" Yukari's voice was as silky as ever, but the miko could practically hear her slowly rising from bed. No doubt she woke the gap hag up.

"Hey, sleepyhead, I have a missing Marisa and I need your help."

"But Reimu, you woke me up~" Yukari yawned delicately. "Maybe the magician is avoiding you? Her mentor sure liked her pocket dimension holidays, so I would not put it past the girl." Reimu went silent for a few seconds, then huffed again.

"I doubt it. Her alone time is spent blowing up things in her house or something. She's vanished, and I want you to find her."

"And why would I spoil the fun you're having looking for her, my little miko~?"

"I won't annoy you whenever the next big incident happens."

"No more daytime phone calls to wake me up? You have yourself a deal, Reimu~". With that, her voice faded away for a minute, before returning with a giggle.

"Well, sweet red, your friend seems to be having the time of her life right now, mmhm~". She giggled again, which just made the shrine maiden grumble.

"Details, Yukari, I want details."

"My, my! I dare say you're not ready to know the details. I'll explain when you're older, darling~ For now, I believe you should let your friend have some quality private time"

"Eh, the hell's that supposed to mean!? You better start explaining now, gap hag!" Yukari just laughed at that.


End file.
